Ocular manifestations of COVID-19: facts and figures from a tertiary care center.

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 patients presenting with ocular manifestations are from 0.8% to 32% of patients seen in the ED. The available literature is scarce regarding COVID-19 patients presenting with ocular manifestations from the Middle Eastern region. PURPOSE: This study aims to report the incidence of ocular signs and symptoms in COVID-19 patients and find any correlation between the occurrence of ocular manifestations and patients' comorbidities. METHODS: All patients having the primary diagnosis of COVID-19 infection and concurrent ocular manifestations on admission to our tertiary COVID-19 health care centre were included in the study. The patient's demographic data, comorbidities, and type of ocular manifestations were recorded from the patients' health records retrospectively. RESULTS: In our study, 39 (7.8%) patients presented with ocular manifestations. The majority of COVID-19 patients were male, and 200 (20%) patients had a history of other comorbidities. The majority of our patients had hyperaemia (13 [33.3%]), followed by eye pain (9 [23.1%]), epiphora (8 [20.5%]), burning sensation (4 [10.3%]), and photophobia (2 [5.1%]) patients. There was no statistically significant difference in the occurrence of ocular manifestations and patients' gender or comorbidities (p > .05). CONCLUSION: The occurrence of ocular manifestations was lower compared to the present literature. There was no significant association between the occurrence of ocular manifestations and the patient's gender or comorbidities.

Quality of Life, Sleep Quality, Depression, Anxiety, Stress, Eating Habits, and Social Bounds in Nurses during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic in Qatar (The PROTECTOR Study): A Cross-Sectional, Comparative Study.

There have been numerous concerns regarding the physical and mental health of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stress, sleep deprivation, anxiety, and depression potentiated nurses' vulnerability to poor eating habits. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to explore the differences between nurses' characteristics with COVID-19 facility designation, and sleep quality, depression, anxiety, stress, eating habits, social bonds, and quality of life. DESIGN: A cross-sectional, comparative study. METHODS: An online survey was sent using the corporation's email to nurses working in three hospitals in Qatar from September to December 2020. One of them is a designated COVID-19 facility. The sleep quality, depression, eating habits, social bonds, and quality of life were measured using The Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale 21 (DASS-21), Emotional Eater Questionnaire (EEQ), Oslo Social Support Scale (OSSS-3), and the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF), respectively. RESULTS: A total of 200 nurses participated in the study (RR: 13.3%). No statistically significant association was found between designated facility (COVID-19 vs. not COVID-19) or nurses' characteristics and ISI categories (OR 1.15; 95% CI 0.54, 2.44). Nurses working in COVID-19 facilities had increased odds of having higher EEQ categories by 2.62 times (95% CI 1.18, 5.83). Similarly, no statistically significant associations were found between any of the nurses' characteristics and OSSS-3 categories. On the other hand, no statistically significant associations were found between any of the nurses' characteristics and QOL domains except for the gender and social relationships' domain. CONCLUSION: Overall, the quality of life of nurses in Qatar is on a positive level whether they are assigned to a COVID-19 facility or not. Although no significant difference was found with regard to the sleep quality, stress, anxiety, depression, and eating habits between nurses in a COVID-19 facility and in a non-COVID-19 facility, special interventions to diminish stressors need to be implemented and maintained.

Comparing the Impact of COVID-19 on Nurses' Turnover Intentions before and during the Pandemic in Qatar.

BACKGROUND: Although several studies examining nurses' turnover intentions have been conducted, few studies have been conducted to explore how COVID-19 contributes to nurses' turnover intentions. This study aims to compare nurses' turnover (TO) intentions before and during COVID-19. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted using the Turnover Intention Scale (TIS-6) and a convenience sample of participants from the largest healthcare provider in Qatar between August and September 2020. RESULTS: A total of 512 nurses were included in the final analysis. The majority were between 31 and 40 years of age (61.5%), 67.6% were females, 76.4% were married, 79.7% had a BSN, 43% had less than 5 years of experience, and 60.4% had worked in COVID-19 designated facilities. The turnover intentions were higher compared with before COVID-19 (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Nurses in Qatar have higher TO intentions during COVID-19. The participants' characteristics and stress levels are playing a major role in nurses' decision to leave during COVID-19. Understanding the factors that contribute to turnover intentions is crucial for workforce planning, especially during pandemics.

The lived experiences of frontline nurses during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Qatar: A qualitative study.

AIM: This study aims to explore the lived experiences of frontline nurses providing nursing care for COVID-19 patients in Qatar. DESIGN: Qualitative, Phenomenological. METHODS: Nurses were recruited from a designated COVID-19 facility using purposive and snowball sampling. The participants were interviewed face-to-face using semi-structured interview questions from 6 September-10 October 2020. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological method. RESULT: A total of 30 nurses were interviewed; (76.7%) were deployed for >6 months. Three major themes were drawn from the analysis: (a) Challenges of working in a COVID-19 facility (subthemes: working in a new context and new working environment, worn out by the workload, the struggle of wearing protective gear, fear of COVID-19, witnessing suffering); (b) Surviving COVID-19 (subthemes: keeping it safe with extra measures, change in eating habits, teamwork and camaraderie, social support); and (c) Resilience of Nurses (subthemes: a true calling, a sense of purpose).

Nurses' willingness to work with COVID-19 patients: The role of knowledge and attitude.

AIM: This study aims to assess the role of nurses' knowledge and attitude in relation to their willingness to work with patients diagnosed with COVID-19 in Qatar. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. METHODS: A self-administered, 35-item online survey was circulated to the Registered Nurses working in Hamad Medical Corporation, the principal healthcare provider in Qatar. RESULTS: A total of 580 attempts to complete the survey. Of them, 377 completed surveys with a response rate of 65%. Logistic regression was used to predict nurses' willingness to work with patients with COVID-19. Nurses' knowledge level and monetary compensation that is associated with the work-environment risk category were found to have a significant positive relationship with the nurses' willingness to care for patients with COVID-19 (p < .05). The findings of this study may help nursing leaders design educational programmes and remuneration models that may help boost nurses' willingness to work with high-risk patient groups, especially during a pandemic.